Stay on target

They don’t come at the yearly pace they used to, but you can still always count on a new James Bond movie being just around the corner. And although his record has been about as spotty as any other Bond’s, Daniel Craig’s run has had some of the highest highs (Casino Royale, Skyfall) and lows that are still interesting in how they relate the franchise’s legacy (Quantum of Solace, Spectre).

After delays and director changes, Craig’s fifth James Bond film and the 25th official entry overall is finally on track to release next April. And now that filming is about to begin, director Cary Joji Fukunaga and crew officially revealed the rest of the cast for this movie that doesn’t even have a name yet.

Alongside Craig as 007, most of Bond’s friends have also returned. This includes Ralph Fiennes as MI6 boss M, Naomie Harris as his assistant Moneypenny, Rory Kinnear as chief of staff Bill Tanner, and Ben Whishaw as gadget guru Q. A more unexpected return is Léa Seydoux as Dr. Madeleine Swann, Bond’s woman from the last movie. And after a two-film hiatus, Jeffrey Wright is back as Bond’s CIA buddy Felix Leiter.

Bond 25 also introduces many promising new cast members. Most noteworthy is Rami Malek, just off his Oscar win for Bohemian Rhapsody, probably playing the villain. He had weird modern Bond villain energy for sure in Mr. Robot. Ana De Armas from Blade Runner 2049 and Lashana Lynch from Captain Marvel are potential new Bond Girls. Meanwhile, Billy Magnussen and David Dencik have got to be new goons.

Bond 25 has a great lead, great villain, great supporting cast, and great director considering Fukunaga’s previous work on True Detective and Beasts of No Nation. And Phoebe Waller-Bridge is polishing up a great script from John Logan, Neal Purvis, Robert Wade, and Scott Z. Burns. So hopefully when Bond 25 releases on April 8, 2020, it’ll be the great final film a great James Bond like Daniel Craig deserves. We don’t want him to slit his wrists.